Great news: House Bill 99, the medical malpractice reform bill that Think New Mexico is supporting, passed the House Judiciary Committee on a unanimous 10-0 vote and is now headed to a vote of the full House!

The bill's lead sponsor, Rep. Christine Chandler (D-Los Alamos) worked with her primary co-sponsor Gail Armstrong (R-Magdalena) and many stakeholders to develop a fair compromise that was adopted by the House Judiciary Committee. That compromise removes the problematic amendment from the House Health and Human Services Committee, which would have left most health care providers in the state exposed to unlimited punitive damages.

In its current form, the bill caps punitive damages for all health care providers, with different tiers of caps for different types of providers. The bill also includes a majority of the other malpractice reforms that Think New Mexico recommended in our 2024 report on addressing New Mexico's health care worker shortage.

The House Judiciary Committee Substitute for House Bill 99 strikes a reasonable balance that will bring New Mexico's malpractice system more in line other states like Colorado. The bill is now sponsored by 43 legislators, or 38% of the legislature, but we need a big bipartisan vote in the House today to give it the momentum to get heard and passed in the Senate.

Please urge your legislators to vote yes on the House Judiciary Committee Substitute for House Bill 99! 

Two Compacts Scheduled in Senate Committee Today

Thanks to all of you who have encouraged your legislators to pass more of the interstate compacts for health care workers this session!

We are very pleased that the Senate Health and Public Affairs Committee is scheduled to hear the compacts for physician's assistants and physical therapists this afternoon. These are two of the eight compacts currently awaiting a hearing in that committee, and we hope the other six won't be far behind.

There is still plenty of time left in the session to get all eight compacts to the governor's desk. Please join us in continuing to urge your legislators to pass all the compacts this session!

Fight Continues Against Special Interest Lottery Bill

Unfortunately, the bill to repeal the law guaranteeing that at least 30% of lottery revenues will go to student scholarships passed the Senate Health and Public Affairs Committee and now moves on to the Senate Finance Committee.

As in past years, the special interests behind the bill are the multinational corporations that contract with the Lottery, since their contracts (and profits) were cut back after the 30% guarantee was enacted. Every dollar that goes to these lottery vendors is a dollar less for students.

The lottery vendors have a team of lobbyists pushing the bill, so it's important to have your voices joining ours to speak up for the best interests of the students who rely on the lottery scholarship.

Please keep urging legislators to oppose Senate Bill 309!

Fred, Kristina, Susan, Mandi, Katie, Lauren, and Noah

Think New Mexico